The Irken Intergalactic Dance
by HorseofDoom
Summary: Before Operation Impending Doom 1, when Zim and Tak are younger. Zim loses a bet with his friend and is forced to take Tak, who was once sweet and innocent, to a dance. From there, chaos insues. It's my first FanFic, please be kind!
1. It All Begins With Cheeto's

I'm new at this thing, so bear with me please! Thanks for reading this. It's is just a short story that my other Invader Zim obsessed friends and I came up with at lunch at school one day. It's actually a part of another larger story, but you don't need to know about those to understand this one. _  
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_Disclaimer: I don't own Invader Zim – this incredible show belongs to the ingenious Jhonen Vasquez. _

"So…if I move this battle cruiser to the right, and the Voot to the left, I can successfully demolish the Exclunium race!" said a young Irken named Zim to his friend Snix while playing a game of Galactic Invasion ™ © ®.

"Hmm…and if I move this cruiser to the top right corner, I could set my bowl of Cheeto's directly in front of me!" said Snix happily.

Zim sighed deeply. "Your stomach controls your mind, Snix."

"And, isn't that awesome?" asked Snix, scarfing down a few handfuls of Cheeto's.

Zim grimaced, and turned back to his game board battle plans. "So…back to the game…"

"Ah, yes," Snix said. "Speaking of that, who are you taking to the Intergalactic Dance?"

"What does that have to do with…never mind. I'm not going to the dance. I _can't_ dance. Plus, it would ruin my image, especially because I am ZIM, and I am going to be one of the elite Invaders. _And_…"

"Zim."

"_What_?"

"First, stop monologing. Second, you have to go. It's required."

"What! Why?" whined Zim.

"There's no reason, man," Snix said, scarfing down more Cheeto's.

Zim scowled. "That's disgusting. Fine. So I have to take a…girl…a very _unworthy_ girl…to this…this…dance…?" The young Irken groaned, and then shuddered. "The whole romance and couples stuff is really horrendous to think about. Who's left to take, then?"

"I think there are two girls left," responded Snix. "Tenn and Tak."

Zim was shocked. "_Tenn_ doesn't have a date already? She's the most popular girl in the Academy!"

"I know. But maybe she's simply waiting for…I dunno…something…that we wouldn't really understand anyway," replied Snix.

"Yes, I suppose. Well, I'm definitely taking Tenn."

"Ha! I was going to," Snix said with amusement.

"I think I should," said Zim with a smirk.

"How about we make a deal? Whoever loses has to take Tak," suggested Snix.

"I feel sorry for you, then," said Zim, grinning evilly. "It's agreed to. So, what's the deal?"

"I'll win it. You're taking Tak."

"What's the deal?" Zim frowned.

"Whoever eats the most Cheeto's gets to take Tenn to the dance," said Snix with a malicious grin.

Zim blinked. "But…Cheeto's make me sick."

"Exactly."

"That's not fair, Snix!"

"You already agreed! A deal's a deal, and you can't go back on your word. Your mistake. You should have asked me what the agreement was. So…ha, ha, ha. " Snix patted Zim on the back as Zim stared blankly at Snix. "Have fun with titanium mouth……er…I mean…Tak." And with that Snix left Zim to be alone with his game.

Zim miserably sat staring at the wall. His first thought was how this whole 'dance' issue was going to make his ego appear to be softened, and that in itself would not make him quality Invader material. And then there was the issue of Tak, who had a set of teeth-correctors so massive that one could probably land a battle cruiser on them. Zim shuddered at the thought, and then sighed.

"I suppose that I might as well get this over with," he said quietly, standing up slowly as though he was in pain, and then he too walked out of the room.

(Page break)

Tak was totally distraught. She couldn't find a date to the Intergalactic Dance. She would be the only girl without a date. All of the girls would ridicule her more than they already did. Although, she understood why she wasn't well sought after by the Irken boys. She had a huge set of braces that were not just on her mouth. The entire set went around the back and top of her head. It looked like a neck brace attached to her mouth.

It wasn't just the braces that caused her to be ridiculed. She was barely able to talk clearly through the contraption. The words that came out of her mouth were horribly lisped. She sounded very weird when she talked, and she knew it. But the good news was that the braces were scheduled to come off next week, unless something drastic happened to them. Tak laughed at that.

Suddenly, a very slow knock came at her front door. Tak assumed it was yet another dentist. She sighed and got up, casually walking over to the door. She opened it and jumped in surprise.

Standing in the doorway was one of her classmates, Zim. He looked really pained. He looked up at her nervously and said, "Hello Tak," after which he averted his gaze.

'Aw, he's shy,' thought Tak with a quick smile. She had to admit, she had always liked Zim. Not in _that_ way, but as a pretty nice guy. Sure, he was a bit hot-headed, egotistical, and flamboyant, but she still liked him. Tak stared at Zim as though she was in a trance: all starry-eyed.

Zim wasn't on the same thought level as Tak. He coughed. "Um…why are you looking at me like that?" he asked hesitantly, snapping Tak out of her trance.

"Uh…um…no reashun," she stammered through her lisp.

"OK," he said with a quick shake of his head. "I lost a bet, so I have to take you to the Intergalactic Dance."

Tak stared at him in astonishment. "Hhyou…hhyou……want to…take…me!"

Zim was about to question what she meant by 'want to,' but instead he replied "Sure."

Tak was absolutely overjoyed. She clapped her hands together and squealed in delight. Before Zim could say a word, she threw herself into his arms and started to cry happily. Zim, on the other hand, staggered as he caught her, utterly confused at this girl's reaction. He had never been or had the desire to be in this position before. He looked around worriedly, to be sure no one was watching the situation.

"Shhank you, shhank you, shhank you!" said Tak, standing back up and looking him right in the eyes.

"Um…you're welcome…" said Zim uncertainly.

"Hhyou don't know how happy you'f made me!" she exclaimed, giving him yet another hug.

Zim tried, in as nice of a manner as he could, to unwrap himself from her embrace. After several seconds with no success, he panicked and pushed Tak away.

"Sorry," he mumbled as he hurriedly brushed himself off.

"It'th fine," she said with a huge grin on her face. "When are you going to pihhk me up for the danth?"

"Oh, I have to do that, too?" Zim asked, trying to conceal his disgust as he wiped lisped spit off his forehead. "How about at five o'clock?"

"I'm thoh exhhited!" she squealed. "OK, thhee you then! Thith ith going to be thoh muthh fun!" She giggled and blew Zim a kiss, and then shut her front door. Once it was shut, she leaned against it and allowed herself to slide down slowly. "I'm not as muthh of a pathetihhk thhlimplod ath I thought! I haff a date! And he ith thhomeone who liketh me, otherwithe he wouldn't haff athked me out!" She couldn't keep herself from crying again.

Meanwhile on the other side of the door, and the other side of the spectrum, Zim stood looking absolutely dumbfounded. He shook his head in disbelief and as he turned to go, he looked up at the evening Irk sky and said, "What went wrong?"


	2. At the Dance

_Disclaimer: I don't own Invader Zim – I don't quite have that much creative genius._

And so it soon came to be the big night. The dance itself wasn't to be formal at all. It was being hosted by the Irken Empire to help cover up the oncoming Operation Impending Doom 1 and give Irk a friendly, corporation-like appearance. This is partly why it was required for any students at the Irken Academy to attend the dance. Another reason was that the teachers simply enjoyed tormenting their students.

So we now find Zim standing in front of Tak's front door. He had been standing there for over five minutes, trying to decide whether or not to knock. He finally shrugged his shoulders and knocked feebly. Tak immediately threw open the door and grinned, striking a pose to show off. Zim simply arched an eyebrow questioningly.

"Do you liketh my new outfit?" she asked, striking yet another pose.

Zim could not, in all honesty, see a difference between her sets of clothing from the day he had first talked with her and today. But he knew not to tell her that. "Um… …yeah…you look…nice…" Zim said, obviously not used to giving compliments. "Should we head to the dance?"

"Thhure!" exclaimed Tak loudly.

Zim tried to dodge the lisped spit spray and then nodded feebly. He headed back towards his ship. But Tak stayed put.

"A'hem!" she coughed.

Zim whirled around. "What's wrong?"

"Aren'th you going to ethcort me?" she asked innocently.

Zim grumbled under his breath and walked back up to the door. Tak giggled in delight as she took his arm and walked with him to his ship. They boarded his small voot cruiser and flew towards the Irken Convention Center, and well as towards one of the worst nights of their lives.

At the dance…

"Hey! Nithe outfit!" exclaimed Tak to one of her female classmates who was backing away slowly. "And, you haff a date! Thoh do I! Theee! _My_ date ith Thim!"

"My name is _Zim_," he corrected with a growl. He was quickly pulled over to yet another of Tak's classmates. He groaned. Tak had been parading him around the dance floor and showing him off to all of her classmates, as though he was her pet or something. 'Although,' he thought to himself. 'I am lucky she hasn't asked me to dance…yet.'

Once Tak was finished with showing off to her classmates, she proceeded to start showing Zim off to some of the other alien species which had attended the dance. Zim really didn't mind, because he dreaded dancing.

"Hello! How do you like the danth? Good! Well, thith ith my boyfwend!" said Tak, putting her arm around Zim's waist.

Zim removed her hand instantly. She reached for his waist again. "Hey!" he said, trying to avoid her. "We're not going out, Tak! I'm not your boyfriend!" He shuddered at the word.

Tak turned to face him and put her hand gently on his chest. She looked sweetly into his eyes and said, "No, not yet."

Horrified at Tak's response, Zim immediately drew back. "Uh…um…I have to go get some punch."

"All right. Hurry backhh!"

Zim ran to the concession stand. He slapped five Irken dollars down on the counter and demanded something that would calm his nerves.

"Sorry," said the clerk. "I can't sell to you. You're underage."

Zim's eye twitched. He slapped a one hundred Irken dollar bill onto the counter. "_Now_ am I underage!" he demanded with a hiss.

"No, sir!" replied the clerk, pouring a steep glass of punch that had a bit of an Irken version of Ritalin in it, which Zim felt was going to have to be a necessity for him in dealing with Tak tonight. He drank it down in record time, handed the glass back to the clerk, and said, "Thanks. I needed that."

"She's that bad?" asked the clerk.

"Oh, yes."

"Take my advice, since I'm not using it," said the clerk, leaning over the counter to talk to Zim. "Do what she asks. It'll make the night go smoother and faster."

"Is that advice from experience?" asked Zim.

"Naw. Sounded like it, though, huh?"

Zim rolled his eyes, and then hesitantly walked back to where he had left Tak. She immediately saw him and ran up to him, giving him a huge hug. "I mithhed you, Thimie-Poo!" she exclaimed really loudly.

Zim gaped at her in horror. Some of his fellow classmates began to snicker in amusement. They had to cover their mouths with their hands and turn away in order to keep from bursting into hysterical laughter. Zim felt absolutely humiliated, and Tak took no notice whatsoever.

"Hey, Thim?" she asked.

"What," he asked, even though he didn't really care. He simply wanted to leave.

"Can we go danth? Thith ith a nithe, thlow tune. It would mean thoh muthh to me if you danthed with me."

"I…don't really want to dance."

Tak looked deeply hurt. "Why?"

"Tried it once. Didn't like it. Plus, I have an image to uphold if I'm going to be one of the elite Invaders."

"But…"

"But what?" Zim asked, almost in irritation.

Tak struggled as tears came running down her face. "It'th only one danth. Pleathhe, Thim?"

"Oh, c'mon. Don't cry." Zim looked around nervously. "Fine. Fine, I'll dance with you."

Tak wiped away her tears and smiled at Zim. He returned her gesture with a half-hearted smile. Together they walked to the dance floor and started to slow dance to a very slow tune. Zim grudgingly slow danced with Tak, a frown on his face. Tak, on the other hand, was absolutely enthralled to be dancing with anyone, let alone Zim.

'I wonder if he likes me as much as I do him,' she wondered, as Zim looked over at the concession stand.

'I wonder if that clerk will find out that that was a counterfeit one hundred Irken dollar bill,' he wondered, smiling to himself.

'Oh, he's smiling! He must be happy to be dancing with me!' she thought contentedly.

'By the time that clerk finds out, I'll be light years away, invading an enemy planet for Operation Impending Doom 1,' thought Zim, still smiling.

'He really is happy. Maybe he likes me for who I am!' She paused. 'But I have to know for sure.'

"Thim?" she asked out loud. "Thim? Do you…uh…?"

Zim snapped out of his train of thought. He had thought he had heard his name, but over all of the noise at the dance, he could barely hear anything. He saw Tak looking at him anxiously, and decided that she must have been the one who had said his name. He leaned in and turned his head sideways a little so he could hear her a little better with his antennae. "What?" he asked.

"I thedd…" Tak repeated louder. "Are you happy to be here, with me, tonight?"

"Yes, I suppose," said Zim with a monotone voice. He started to pull his head back so he wouldn't be leaning over, but as soon as he tried, he felt a sharp pain coming from the base of the antennae that was closer to Tak. Zim frowned, and reached up to feel his antennae, following it from the base to where it was…

"Stuck in Tak's braces!" Zim yelped loudly. He began to panic.

"Thim?" Tak asked anxiously. "What'th wrong?"

He had to awkwardly turn his head to look at her. Even this action made his antennae throb in pain. "Tak! My antennae…is…caught…OWW!...in your braces!"

"Are you thure?" she asked with a frown.

"Would I joke about something like that?" he snapped.

"OK…um…let me find thumm help." Tak looked around herself, pulling Zim with her each time she turned her head.

"Oww…oww…OWW!" Zim bawled.

"Thorry!" Suddenly, she spotted one of the overseers to the dance, who was supposed to make sure that things didn't get out of hand at the dance. Tak started walking over to him. Zim yelped in pain.

"Tell me, PLEASE, when we're going to move!" he yelled.

"Thorry…jutht, follow me," she said quietly. Zim, quite obviously, had no choice but to follow her, being pulled along by his antennae.

Tak stopped in front of the overseer. She looked at his nametag. "Um…hello? My boyfriend and I haff a problem."

Zim groaned. "I'm not your…OWW!"

The overseer leaned over. "What's the problem," he asked in a bored tone.

Tak pointed at the antennae. "He got it thtuck."

The Irken saw it and drew back, reaching up to his own antennae. "Oh, jeez! Gahh! That's horrible! How did you manage that!"

"I don't know! Just get it out!" yelled Zim.

"I'm not trained to handle situations like this," replied the overseer.

"Well, obviously not! It's not like antennae get caught in braces very often!" Zim snapped.

"Well, no, but I'm going to have to send you to the hospital. Follow me…I'll get you to an ambulance."

"OK," said Tak with a smile, as she began to follow their new escort down a hallway and out of the dance.

"Oww! Tell me next time that you…OWW!" yelled Zim as he was pulled awkwardly along.


	3. Explosions and Star Gazing

_Disclaimer: Sorry, I still don't own Invader Zim. The copyright offices won't respond to my pleas. I'll probably also have to mention that a part of this was inspired by a section of the book Dave Barry's Guide to Guys, which seemed rather fitting for it. If you've read it, you'll probably recognize which part._

"Does this incompetent…oww!...pilot…oww!...not know how to…oww!..._drive_ smoothly!" Zim said in between jolts from the ambulance ship.

"It'th only a little turbulanthe," replied Tak.

"Turbulence my…OWW!"

"At leatht we're on our way to the hothpital. And then thith will be all over," replied Tak.

"Finally," Zim muttered quietly.

Suddenly the ship's pilot started to cough and grab at his chest. He took his hands off the controls and continued to cough and grab wildly. Zim and Tak looked nervously at the pilot. The pilot soon began to twitch violently. The ambulance ship veered sharply to the right and plummeted downwards in a spinning free fall. The now unconscious, and possibly dead, pilot collapsed onto the control panel as the ship plunged towards the planet's surface.

Meanwhile, Zim and Tak screamed in terror. Tak grabbed onto Zim, and for once, he didn't draw back from her. They watched in terror as the ground rushed up to meet them, and they continued to scream.

The minute the ship hit the desert land of planet Irk, the airbags in the back part of the ship deployed. Zim and Tak were flung forward onto the airbags and they bounced into the back doors. The force of them hitting these doors caused the doors to fling open. The two young Irkens went flying onto the desolate desert of their home planet. They rolled to a stop, a swirl of reddish dust surrounding them. All was quiet.

Suddenly, the ambulance ship exploded. The ground shook from the outburst of fire and fuel, and the sound was so loud that both of the Irkens thought they were going to go deaf. Finally, after all was still again and the remains of the ambulance were steadily being engulfed by a fiery inferno, Tak said, "That poor pilot."

Zim replied, almost in an annoyed tone, "He was dead before we hit the ground. He got a major Squeedly Spooch attack. We're lucky the air bags didn't deploy a second later. Otherwise we would have been dead too."

"I thuppose you're right," mumbled Tak quietly.

"Of course I am," said Zim. "Now. Let's see if I…er…we can get up."

Before he began to pull himself to his feet, Tak stopped him. "Thim? Um…from what I can theee, it'th going to be really hard for uth to get up if your other antennae ith altho caught."

Zim halted and felt along the baseline of the other antennae. He froze when he reached the end of it, and realized that Tak was right. "Why me! WHY ME?"

Tak was beginning to get sick of his egotistical behavior. "Listen Thim! It'th not _that_ bad for you! You don't haff an entire body hanging from your teeth!"

"Yeah! Well, I've got one hanging from my antennae!"

"Don't tahhk to me like that!" she yelled angrily.

"Fine! Then I won't talk to you at all!" Zim snapped.

So they sat in silence, both lying on their backs, staring up at the dark blue night sky and at the stars that shone down on them. Both had to awkwardly turn their head to stay comfortable, or in Zim's case, to avoid as much pain as possible. The way in which each was laying made it indescribably impossible for either of them to stand up. They were going to have to stay put until help arrived.

Zim was actually feeling really bad for talking so rudely to his so called 'date'. But he was _not_ going to be the one to apologize first for his actions, so he waited. Tak, on the other end of the spectrum, was feeling miserable. She figured that Zim was mad at her for her statements, and she felt that she had ruined her date and possibility of ever actually being with Zim. She started to break down in tears.

"I'm tho thorry, Thim! I neffer meant to hurt you!" she sobbed, talking about their latest conversation.

Zim, as usual, didn't see the deeper meaning of what she had said. "It's OK. Surgery will fix it right up."

Tak wiped away her tears and amidst her crying, she frowned in confusion. She lightly shook her head, but continued listening.

"And…" Zim stumbled over his words. "I'm sorry…that…uh…yeah…that I…um…yelled at…you."

Tak was overjoyed. He was apologizing, and it had all been her fault. It was a misunderstanding on his part, and yet he felt bad about something that she couldn't quite recall. 'He must really like me, to do something like that!' she thought.

"Thim? I apprethiate that," she said innocently.

"Uh…OK…?" Zim said obliviously.

There was silence for a while, and each gazed at the stars. "Thith ith pretty peatheful, huh?" Tak asked.

Zim yawned in boredom, which Tak couldn't see, but she thought it sounded like a sigh. She smiled and snuggled up to him. Zim couldn't move away from her, although he desperately wanted to.

"Thim?" she asked.

"What."

"Do you…" she swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. She was really uneasy about asking him this next question.

"Do I what?" he asked.

"Do you think we haff a future?"

After this, there was total silence. Tak glanced around nervously. She began to think to herself: 'I wonder if it bothers him that I said that. Maybe he thinks I'm trying to push him into a relationship he's not ready for. What have I done?'

Zim was thinking: 'Do we have a future! Jeez, what a stupid question. Everyone has a future. And a past. And a present. Five minutes from now, who knows what I'll be doing, but it will still be my future. Unless I suddenly die, I will always have a future.'

And Tak was thinking: 'Maybe he was confused by my question. I should clarify it. Yes, that's it!'

"Um…together. I meant together," she said aloud. 'That should clarify it,' she thought.

But there was continuing silence. To Tak, it was a _very _loud silence. She could hardly breathe while she waited for Zim's response.

Zim was thinking: 'OK, talk about random. She just throws this word out. What should I do? Hmmm…nothing. If I do I'll probably do or say something wrong.'

And Tak was thinking: 'Maybe he still feels like I'm trying to confine him. I was too forward. Things were going just fine until I had to open my big mouth and blurt out that question!'

And Zim was thinking: 'Speaking of that, if I do or say anything wrong during my Invader testing, I will most definitely not be an Invader. But, really, no worries there, since I am Zim, and I will undoubtedly soon become…Invader Zim! Oh, that has a nice ring to it…'

And Tak was thinking: 'He's upset. Otherwise, he would have said something to me. He doesn't want to tell me what he's truly feeling. Unless I'm reading this entirely wrong. Maybe he wants _more_ commitment or _more_ sincerity from this relationship. Maybe he felt I was the one holding back my feelings. That's it! He's reluctant to express his own feelings because he's afraid of being rejected!'

And Zim was thinking: 'I wonder what kind of mission I'll be sent on. Probably something very prestigious and top priority, because I am Zim and I deserve nothing less.'

And Tak was thinking: 'I feel so guilty, putting him through this. But, I just can't help the way I feel about our relationship!'

And Zim was thinking: 'Wow! I never noticed it before, but that constellation looks like a 'Z' if I twist my head a little to the left…oh, that hurt...but oh well. Hey, I wonder if I can find an 'I' in the constellations…?'

And Tak was thinking: 'Oh no! He just fidgeted! He's upset! And who can blame him? I can't believe myself.'

And Zim was thinking: 'There's an 'I'! It's a little deformed, but an 'I' is an 'I'. Let's see…'M'…'M', 'M', 'M'……there! 'M'! Yes! I can spell my name with constellations!'

And Tak was thinking: 'I'm just too self-centered. It's my problem. And because of it, I'm making him suffer psychologically!'

And Zim was thinking: 'And if I can spell my name in constellations, who knows what _else_ I can accomplish in my lifetime! If I grow enough, I might even be a commander, second only to the Almighty Tallest!'

And Tak was thinking: 'Why am I so horribly idealistic? Here I am, laying next to a perfectly nice Irken, an Irken I enjoy being with, and who seems to also enjoy being with me. And now he's in physical pain with his antennae, and emotional pain because of my egotistical fantasies!'

And Zim was thinking: 'Those idiots at the Academy who say I'll never amount to anything because I'm too short. I'll grow. Believe me. And when I'm famous and highly respected those guys can take their comments and shove them right up their…'

"Thim!" Tak said aloud.

"What?" he asked, startled out of his thinking.

"Pleathe…don't torture yourthelf like thith!" she said, on the verge of tears. "I thhould never have put you through thith! I'm thuch an idiot! You think I'm an idiot, don'th you?"

"Of course not!" said Zim, glad to know the correct answer in his state of confusion.

"It'th jutht that…oh, I don't know. I feel tho horrible about making you…" She couldn't finish. She began to cry, her emotions overwhelming her.

Zim was clueless as to what to say. He tried for several seconds to think of what he could possibly say to make her feel better. Then he thought of something that just might possibly work. "Tak? Uh…I'm pretty sure we have a future."

Tak ended her sobbing. She was deeply moved. "Do you really feel that way, Zim?"

Zim glanced around nervously. "Uh…yes…" He was still unbelievably confused.

Tak sighed in relief and hugged Zim's head, since it would have been impossible for her to hug him any other way. Zim started to cough from a lack of air. "Oh, Thim! We haff a future! We haff a future!" she squealed hugging tighter.

"Can't…breathe…!" Zim wheezed. She relaxed her grip on him and he gasped for air.

"I'm tho glad that we can underthtand eathh other on thith leffel!" Tak said, tears of happiness in her eyes. After regaining his breathing, Zim stayed absolutely still, staring at the stars. He was pretty sure that something major had occurred just then, but that there was no way he would ever understand exactly what. He was also disappointed to discover that he could no longer find his name in the constellations.

Tak suddenly noticed some flashing lights on the horizon. She quickly sat straight up.

"Look! Rethcue!" Right as she sat up, she heard a snapping sound and Zim screamed.

She looked down at her braces slowly, and saw a good half of one of Zim's antennae still stick. The other half was still on Zim. Tak gulped.

Zim, meanwhile, was whimpering in pain. Half of one of his antennae had just been broken off. He feebly held onto that antennae as though that would make it feel better. Tears were inadvertently sliding down his cheeks. His single antennae was bleeding intensely.

"Oh my god! Thim! I'm thorry, I'm thorry!" wailed Tak.

Zim couldn't respond. The pain was just too intense. He was starting to feel light-headed from a lack of blood. The landscape began to spin around him, and then, from the trauma and the lack of blood, blackness surrounded him and he passed out.

However, Tak didn't know that. All she could see and feel was Zim's body going limp. "Oh, no! OH NO! Thim! NO! Don't die! I need you! Pleathe, pleathe, pleathe…don't die! Oh, my god…I've killed you! Oh, Thim, I'm tho thorry!" She started to cry uncontrollably, cradling his head in her arms.

After a few minutes, the rescue squad arrived on the scene. There was actually only one member of the 'squad.' He jumped heroically out of the rescue vehicle and ran over to Tak.

"Remain calm," he said hurriedly. "You were in an ambulance ship crash…"

"I know that!" snapped Tak. "Hurry and get uth to a hothpital! One and a half of hith antennae are thtuck in my brathes, and I think he might be dead! Tho hurry it up!"

"OK, OK!" replied the rescue squad guy. "Let's figure out how to get you both into the rescue ship and to the hospital."


	4. Going Their Seperate Ways

_Disclaimer: Sadly, I still don't own Invader Zim. _

_This is the last chapter for this story! I hope you guys enjoyed it. Thanks a billion to everyone who has reviewed it – it means so much to me!_

Zim woke up sleepily. He blinked slowly, trying to adjust his eyes to the bright light. As he looked around at where he was, he became confused. He was no longer in the desolate desert. Now he was in a bland white room with bland white walls, laying in a bland white bed that had bland white sheets. There was a machine next to him that was monitoring his vitals, and a few needles were stuck in his arms, giving him medicine. He wondered if he was still stuck to Tak, so he shook his head back and forth. No pain came – he was free!

He reached up slowly to feel his antennae, or what was left of them, anyway. Instead of antennae, he felt his entire head covered with a bandage. "It's that bad?" he said aloud with a harsh whisper.

"Yeah," said a voice from the bed next to his. He jumped, startled from the noise. He looked over at the origin of the voice. Tak sat in the bed next to him.

"How did I get here?" he asked in confusion.

"You pathhed out after your antennae……broke. A rethcue thquad came and rethcued uth, and then brought uth here, to the hothpital. Then we had to go into thurgery. You were already pathhed out, and they didn't think it would hurt me, tho they didn't put uth on aneththeticth."

"No anesthetics, huh? How was the surgery?" asked Zim, gently rubbing his bandaged head.

"For who?" Tak asked sadly.

"Why…?" Zim frowned.

"They got your one tangled antennae out and the remainder of the other one, but…" She glanced away.

"But what?"

"They had to take my bratheth off in order to untangle your antennae. And that wuth really painful. And then they put a new thet on that I'll haff to wear for the nexhht five yearth!" She almost broke down, but caught and composed herself.

"But…why do you need to wear the braces for longer?" Zim asked, arcing an eyebrow.

"Becauthe…um…uh…the doctor thaid tho."

"That's no reason. What does he know?"

"Thhe."

"What?"

"The doctor ith a female."

"Oh. Well, OK, maybe she _does_ know what she's talking about, if that's the case."

"There ith good newth," Tak interrupted. "They replathed your antennae that broke with a new one. Tho now you haff two, normal, thhraight antennae, not one and a haff."

"Oh." And with that the two fell into silence.

Tak was released from the hospital soon after. She waited anxiously at home for what seemed like weeks until Zim was to be released. She barely got any sleep while she worried about him. Zim, on the other hand, was enthralled to be receiving so much attention. Various hospital attendants waited on him hand and foot. He could demand whatever he wanted and the hospital staff would usually cater to his needs. He was loving it. After a few weeks, the bandage on his head came off, followed by the needles. He didn't want to leave, but after those few weeks he was required to be released.

Zim went home and had very little to do. He quickly got bored of all 5,491 of his video games. He couldn't leave his house to go to the Academy yet, either, because he was still on medical leave.

One day he received a call from Tak. "Hi, honey! How are you feeling?"

Zim frowned at her forward greeting. "Um…well, my head is throbbing and…"

"Do you want to do thomething tonight?" she asked.

"I suppose. It sure beats sitting on my butt all day doing nothing," he replied, glad to have any kind of company, even if it was Tak.

"OK. I'll meet you at the Convenshun Shenter at 5:00," she said happily.

"Seventeen hundred hours? OK…got it." He hung up and looked at the clock. He decided he wouldn't need to leave for another fifteen minutes or so. Suddenly, he got another call. It was an unfamiliar connection code, so Zim hesitantly picked up the messaging system and answered. "Hello…?"

"Hello, is this Zim?" replied a feminine voice on the other end.

"Yes…" he responded nervously.

"Hi, Zim. This is Tenn," replied the other voice.

Zim's eyes widened in surprise. One of _the_ most popular girls in the Academy was talking to _him_. 'Stay calm…don't panic…stay calm…' he thought to himself. "Hi, Tenn. How are you?"

"Probably better than you. How are your antennae? Are they…?"

"Oh. They feel fine. No throbbing or anything," Zim lied.

"I see," Tenn paused. "So do you feel well enough to do anything with me tonight?"

"I'm busy, I think," he replied.

"Are you _sure_?" asked Tenn, rather seductively.

Zim, being a guy, could not ignore this. He immediately responded, "You know, I'm not busy at all. I do feel well enough to do something." He was rather hypnotized by Tenn's voice. And just like that, Tak was forgotten.

"I will see you at 6:00 at the Convention Center," said Tenn.

"Yes, ma'am," replied Zim.

Meanwhile……

It was 6:00. Tak was pacing back and forth in front of the Convention Center. Zim still hadn't shown up. "Where is he?" she said aloud.

She began to wonder if perhaps he had had to go back to the hospital because of his antennae. She doubted it. Perhaps he had simply forgotten, or maybe he had gone with someone else. She laughed. Zim wouldn't do that to her. 'He loves me too much,' she said to herself, sighing softly. 'He said so himself.'

Suddenly, she caught notice of a very familiar Irken walking towards her. "Thim!" she squealed. But he wasn't looking at her. He was looking off to her left. One of her classmates, Tenn, came out of nowhere and ran up to Zim, hugging him tightly. Much to Tak's amazement, he didn't even draw back from the popular Irken girl. Instead, he hugged her back. They drew apart, still holding hands, and Tenn said something to Zim that was inaudible to Tak. He simply smiled at Tenn.

Tak watched in horror and Tenn reached up and stroked Zim's new antennae, and then let her hand slide smoothly down along his cheek. Zim still hadn't drawn away from her; in fact, he seemed to be rather enjoying himself. As the two turned to go, Tenn put her arm around Zim's waist and then turned around to look defiantly at Tak. Then the two disappeared into the crowd.

Tak lowered her head, her eyes darting around as she tried unsuccessfully to comprehend what was going on. Zim had told her that they had a future. He must have been lying. He had deceived her and then run off with a more beautiful Irken girl. She came to a conclusion as her eyes narrowed in anger. Men could not be trusted. They were immature, and totally irresponsible and incompetent to handle anything.

She glared into the crowd where Zim and Tenn had disappeared. All of her suffering was entirely his fault. His actions had changed her from her old, passive self to a new, different, aggressive personality. And she liked this new self. It wielded a feminist power. And using this power, she could give Zim payback for his actions. She would annihilate him down to his every last cell.

"Zim will pay. Oh, how he'll pay!" she said aloud with a sinister laugh as she noticed that this new feminist power also totally eliminated her lisp.

Several Irken passerby gave her very strange looks for her comment. Some were even gaping at her.

"Um…oh, how he'll pay me back for buying him lunch…?" she said quickly, looking nervously at the crowd of passerby staring at her.

Meanwhile……

"It was quite nice of you to take me out, especially after that Intergalactic Dance incident with…um…what's-her-name," said Zim happily as he walked alongside Tenn.

"Um, hmm…" said Tenn monotonously, looking around herself as though she was in search of something. Whatever it was, she took particular interest in it and not in what Zim was saying.

Tak was following them stealthily through the crowded Irken walkways. She had a look of absolute hatred on her face that caused Irkens in her path to sidestep quickly to avoid her possible wrath. She kept a cautious distance from her betrayer and his new girlfriend.

Zim and Tenn entered a restaurant and sat down. The waiter quickly asked for drinks, which the two answered quickly. Tak noted that Zim wanted a Sirus Minor Cola. Without being noticed, she slipped into the kitchen of the restaurant and quickly put on an apron. As the waiter who had taken Zim and Tenn's order came into the kitchen, Tak approached him.

"You can have a five minute break. I'll give the customers their drinks," she said.

"I just had a break," replied the waiter.

"I said…you can have a five minute break," she said as her eyes glimmered. She felt her powers coming on, using an unknown force to persuade and subjugate the waiter.

"Yes," he said, obviously hypnotized. "I'll take a break." And with that, he left.

Tak laughed evilly with this success. She hunted through the cabinets of the restaurant kitchen, her fingers searching lightly over the jars of substances. Finally, she came across a jar intended only for full grown Irkens. The substance was labeled as thus: "Caffeine: Warning! Permanently Stunts Irken Growth." She grinned malevolently. All Zim wanted was to be tall so he could become an Invader. And she was not about to let him.

Tak skillfully poured the two drinks and added caffeine to Zim's. She then walked out to Tenn and Zim's table and set each drink down in front of each recipient. Zim barely glanced at her. She began to tremble in hatred, and so she went to the kitchen doors to watch. She could not keep herself from grinning as Zim sipped at his drink.

Suddenly, Tenn stood up. "Look, Zim. This has been fun and all, but where are the paparazzi? The camera-bots? The news reporters? If I'm going to be going out with you…YOU…who have been _the_ most talked about Irken since the Intergalactic Dance, then I need to get some of the spotlight! I'd rather be on the cover of a magazine because of you instead of actually going out with you. We're done. Do you hear me?"

Zim simply stared at her, holding his cup of altered cola.

Tenn sighed. "You don't get it. You never will. Good bye, Zim." And she left.

'Ha, ha!' Tak thought to herself. 'Now he knows what it feels like to be rejected!' She watched as Zim slowly drank the last of his cola. Tak was surprised when Zim turned to face her.

"Hey, waitress! More cola!" he ordered, without a glimmer of recognition. Tak stared at him in astonishment, and then shook her head and went out the door.

"Where are you going?" he called after her. "Hey! I want more cola!"

_So, that's basically yet another reason as to why Tak hates Zim so much. _

_THE END! _

_(or is it?)_


End file.
